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So I'm working on a guitar for a client and am near to shipping out the instrument. The last time I shipped a guitar I made it was to a client in Taiwan so I definitely charged for International shipping but when the costs are less than $100 I'm not sure if I should eat the cost as a courtesy to my client. For context, I'm a 22 year old who manages a craft beer bar in an effort to support my lutherie aspirations; I don't have the unlimited resources of amazon, thanks to whom free shipping on high dollar items is now expected. I haven't discussed this with my client yet but was wondering how other builders handle this

dang straight.

The last custom guitar I ordered I paid shipping as well as for the case of my choice
I think it’s reasonable, and should be discussed up front after a price has been established so it doesn’t catch anyone off guard:)


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Absolutely charge for shipping, AND for packing it.

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Not only does the shipping cost you money but it costs you time which is money. Absolutely. Nothing is free and you should not have to eat the cost. Your client wants your guitar, they will pay to have it shipped.

Like snowman I let the client pick a guitar case of their choice. I don't have any special deals with any case companies. Some are happy with a $150 dollar case some are happy with an $800 dollar case. It's up to them. Having said that all warranties are off on a gig bag Then I just use the case box to ship the guitar in.

*Absolutely*, you should charge for shipping. It's not like guitarmaking is a big moneymaker.. (heh).

Shipping is a non refundable cost and is borne by the buyer. They always have the option to pick it up if they don't want to pay shipping. If they decide they don't want the instrument within a relatively short period of time (a week) and want a refund they would also have to pay the return shipping (I haven't had that happen yet). The nonrefundable shipping costs makes the client have some "skin in the game" and reduces the "buy to try" syndrome that some big box sellers have created by offering free returns.
Cases (if not made by me) are also the responsibility of the client to supply. I will construct a shipping container which I feel will get the instrument there safely with normal (rough) handling and if a fork lift runs it over I will argue with the shipper about it. I generally don't charge for packing the instrument (I get free packing materials), but only the cost of postage and insurance. If I did this for a living I would roll the cost of packing into the build price.

Anything that costs money should be part of the cost of your product. Running a business isn't free and every thing that costs you money needs to be recouped if you ever want to turn a profit.

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yes

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John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

Yes (most of the time). I shipped one guitar from the US to Austria and charged for shipping and all of the customs stuff. My customer paid the import duties based on the invoice I included. Last year I built a guitar for a person living in New Zealand and hand delivered it. I did not charge him for my airline ticket but he did by me a beer....

Very cool! North or South Island?

Slightly off topic but since AU was mentioned, a freight forward service brought the price down from 8-900$ to 225$ CAD all in...paid for by client.

Why on earth would you not charge for packing and shipping?

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

As the advisors told the king the mystery of life can be solved in one line. There is no free lunch

Well funny thing came up on another forum some years back. I believe it was a very valuable vintage guitar like a prewar Martin that was for sale for something like $50 Grand. Then right under that it said $100 dollars for shipping. Most people got a kick out of that but hey why should the seller have to pay shipping?

"Well funny thing came up on another forum some years back. I believe it was a very valuable vintage guitar like a prewar Martin that was for sale for something like $50 Grand. Then right under that it said $100 dollars for shipping. Most people got a kick out of that but hey why should the seller have to pay shipping? "

Who would you trust to ship a $50000 item? The insurance might eat up the $100!

I think your situation is a bit different in that you are almost done making the guitar and you possibly haven't even talked about the shipping cost with the customer. It should have been part of your original quote and is a legitimate expense normally borne by the buyer. I would talk to the client about it and include the shipping cost in the final statement and send him the amount now since you are almost done. Maybe you already talked to him about it or forgot.

Nobody really likes to be told that there are extra charges when it comes to the end of the transaction. I've never separated out the cost of shipping and handling. I just include a guesstimate of the cost in the original quote and never say shipping is extra. If I end up losing a few bucks over shipping, no big deal. Makes the deal run a little smoother.These days I also include the percentage that I might lose to credit cards or PayPal in the original estimate, and I don't single that out either. I just total up the estimate and hit the 4% button and add it on.If the buyer ends up paying with a check or cash, I surprise them with a discount and they love it. As far as cases go, the price always includes a decent case. Should they want something special and expensive, they can always buy that later.

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“ The meaning of life is to find your gift and the purpose of life is to give it away” Pablo Picasso

Bob, I like your style!

What are you guys doing about shipping insurance? I’ve only tried UPS and it seemed like if I insured it up to 4k It was going to be a couple hundred dollars. Is that normal for UPS?

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Pat

I don't. It only covers loss, not damage, anyway.

Ed--

I kinda think that is not right. I just looked at the UPS terms and conditions, and the document says that the insurance covers both loss and damage. Now, there are exclusions, like there are in lots of insurance policies, and you have to make sure to follow UPS's packaging guidelines, but the point is that there is no real distinction under the UPS terms and conditions between loss and damage. If it is a covered event, both loss and damage are covered.

Could you be thinking of another carrier?

This is exactly the way we treat it. I usually offer a case upgrade and quote a price. If it's a custom guitar like an extra deep body I always add the extra cost for a custom case to the price.

Oops yeah, I do Canada Post/USPS...

To clarify, I had thought the client would pick up the guitar in person as they lived in Brooklyn when the guitar was started. Now they've moved to Austin Texas and we've never had a discussion regarding delivery.

So he ordered and moved, sounds like it's getting close you mentioned to him that delivery costs, if he's not picking it up

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.